Not sure they correct name!

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TexasRed
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Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:28 am

Not sure they correct name!

Post by TexasRed »

I have always liked to look of the Italian style out the sides that do not have the "ears" on the bolster (imagine a swing guard knife the the guard removed). Is there a specific name for this style? Are there any out there for sale?

Sorry if my description is poor or I sound like a moron. Somedays I am (according to my wife).
Last edited by TexasRed on Thu Jun 24, 2021 9:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Highspeedsteel
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by Highspeedsteel »

Earless bolsters?
TexasRed
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by TexasRed »

Ok, found a picture to go along with my eloquent and wordy description.
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JimBrown257
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by JimBrown257 »

I always just call them guardless.
portlandmike
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by portlandmike »

I think the ears have just been cut off that knife
skirmish
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by skirmish »

Maybe your looking for a slant bolster?
Highspeedsteel
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by Highspeedsteel »

That's my knife in the photo and apparently the ears have been removed, post production. One side of the bolsters I would want to argue this, but the other side looks like it could be. I know that there are humpback Rostfrei's with earless bolsters so that might be what you are after
button_man
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by button_man »

Can you show us top-view and bottom-view close-ups of the bolsters, so that we can see any signs of ears having been ground off?

I just leafed through "Switchblades of Italy" -- if you weed out the leverlocks, Catalanas, hunters, shell-pullers, and fishtails..... and just look at
the classic stiletto style.... I only see one 'guardless' pre-1960 knife like yours (page 12). However, this knife is clearly much older than yours.
Interestingly, the knife right next to it shows guards that were ground down!

John Ek (the founder of 'EK' brand knives) insisted on producing combat knives for active-duty servicemen during WW II that had NO guards of any kind;
he was concerned that guards might hang up on clothing or gear, and hinder the rapid withdrawal of the knife in life-or-death situations.
Back in the early days of stiletto production, when there was zero collector base for these knives, and when people were much more likely to buy them with an expectation of actually engaging in conflict, it may have been far more common than nowadays for the owners to grind down the guards for exactly this same reason..... to facilitate quick removal of the knife from a pocket.

The front bolsters on your knife look to have an odd discoloration; and also look like they are actually too small for the knife.
Of course, both of these might simply be due to the way the knife photographs. Still, I wonder what material was used for these bolsters;
and whether or not they are really original to the knife.

P.S. ~ I don't see a release mechanism..... it this bo/bc ?
Highspeedsteel
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by Highspeedsteel »

button_man wrote: Thu Jun 24, 2021 2:24 pm Can you show us top-view and bottom-view close-ups of the bolsters, so that we can see any signs of ears having been ground off?

P.S. ~ I don't see a release mechanism..... it this bo/bc ?
I will take some pics and load them here in a minute... Yessir, the one in the image is BO/BC
huckles
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by huckles »

My Patadas are guardless...
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button_man
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Re: WTB: Not sure they correct name!

Post by button_man »

Yeah, but again, these are not exactly the classic stiletto switchblade -- the sort that you see in "Rebel Without A Cause" (showing on TCM tonight!)
-- most of that 'bird's-head' style (that I've seen, anyhow) either were guardless or occasionally you might run across one with a swinguard.
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whippersnapper
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Re: Not sure they correct name!

Post by whippersnapper »

The slant bolsters are guardless.....Not my knives. Old forum pic.
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button_man
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Re: Not sure they correct name!

Post by button_man »

whip ~ That's a nice display of slants! But my point --which I apparently did not make very well-- is that knives like the one shown by Tex --of that particular style, from that particular era-- were probably not made guardless, but were ground down by the owners. It's very possible that some were
manufactured without guards..... but probably the great majority were made with them. That's all I was saying.

Did you get the slants all at the same time, from the same source? Or did you pick up one here and one there? Just curious ~
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whippersnapper
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Re: Not sure they correct name!

Post by whippersnapper »

These are not my knives. Like I said in the post--which I apparently did not make well.

Besides, my post was directed at texasred. You know, the guy who started the thread. Just showing him another possible option HE may be interested in.
button_man
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Re: Not sure they correct name!

Post by button_man »

My apologies..... I often jump on to this site when I first roll out of bed, when my observational and deductive abilities are often not at their peak.
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